Developing One-Pointedness

Sit and watch inside until you feel comfortable,
quiet and calm. With your eyes still closed, imagine a
beautiful flame in the center of your brow. It is a clear
yellow-white flame sprouting up ward. It is exactly at the
center of your brow. See it there.

If this is easy for you to see, make this
practice part of your meditation and continue to do it every
day.

Some people find this visual imagery difficult.
If you do not see the flame, or if it will not come easily
into you imagination, then light a real candle and set it at
eye level in front of you. This is best to do in a darkened
room. The background behind the candle should be very plain.
Sit and watch the candle for two minutes. Now close your eyes
and visualize the beautiful flame coming in the center of your
brow. Relax and bring it inside you. If you have difficulty,
open your eyes and look at the candle for a short while
again. Do this two or three times for a few moments each
time, but no more than that. Be very careful not to strain or
overexert you eyes.

The candle is a beautiful symbol of ourselves.
The wax is like our body. The flame is our real Self, our
sound or spirit. What happens if we turn a candle upside
down? We see that the flame turns upward. The flame will
never remain downward no matter what you do to the wax. Your
body is like this beautiful candle and you that which is the
center, are like the flame. The wax melts but the flame moves
upward. Though our body ages, we remain the same. Visualize
symbol. Don’t identify with changes in the color of your hair
or wrinkles in your skin. We can slow this process down, but
we can never stop it. Nature must work on our body; it is the
nature of the body, and the nature of nature. The body is
only the circumference, like the candle melting and changing
its size and shape. At the center is you who, like the flame,
do not change.

Questions

1.Should
we concentrate on our body and thoughts for twenty-four
minutes or on the flame?

First make the decision that you will sit for twenty-four
minutes. Resolve to remain for the full time. Then watch
your body as it wants to move about. See your restlessness
and your habits and fancies. When anything comes into your
mind, speak to it as you would to a child you love. Say “Now
I have some work to do, so please leave me alone for awhile.
I will have some time for you later, but not right now.”
Gently come back to your concentration.

For the first two or three days, do only this.
Then add the visualization on the candle flame for the rest of
the week.

2.
Should we do this once a day?

Yes, to start with, once each day is fire. Later, if you
choose to, you can do it twice and then increase the length of
time. But now, one time is enough.

3.What
is the best time of the day?

When your stomach is light is the best time to meditate.

4.When
I first tried this method, I had this problem. First the
image of the candle kept changing and it was very unsteady, as
if it were being blown by the wind. Then it caught something
on fire and I had a forest fire beginning in my mind.. …
Should I try to keep this from happening? How?

Don’t try to suddenly curb or stop your
thoughts. Watch them first and see the tendencies of your mind
and imagination. Be patient with yourself. Bring yourself
back to the image of the steady flame. But be aware and see
the shapes, designs, colors and everything. See the power of
the imagination and go beyond it.

5.What
if I get sleepy?

Meditation helps you to drop
tension. You really don’t fall asleep but you lose awareness
of your body. This is called Yoganidra, the sleep which comes
from yoga and meditation. It is a very wonderful state.
Einstein once said that when he had “direct experience of
silence” for a few minutes, he was more rested than if he had
slept for five hours. Sometimes people sleep for eight hours,
but they are always chasing others and doing business in their
dreams, so they are more tired when they wake up than when
they went to sleep. This meditation will make you calm so you
will have the best kind of rest each night.